The Return of Legends
by S1erra107
Summary: The battle between two of the most powerful Bakugan of their time averted a disaster to Earth. But now one has returned, and it will be up to two teens from a different dimension altogether to stop him. Competition fic for Jet Ravenex's "Dual Dimensions. Please read!


AN; This Fanfic is dedicated to JetRavenex, and her Dual Dimensions fic. It is part of a contest she is holding, and I seriously would recommend checking it out if you already haven't before reading this.

Oo0oO

"These boots look so _cute_ on me, don't you think?" Julie exclaimed as she turned around to show off her new footwear.

Viki rolled her eyes. "Yeah, they look great with your sweater bikini."

Julie's blushing expression was so hysterical that Viki couldn't help but burst out laughing.

They were out shopping in one of Japan's many malls, taking a respite from the heated action of past days. They'd been to a dozen other clothing outlets in the past two hours. They had earlier agreed that they would visit the Bakugan section of the store (which took up a relatively big chunk of the mall up). Viki had invited Jet to join them, but the near tom-boy had turned them down in favor of hanging out with Dan. They would be waiting for them at the BakuStore at 2:30.

Just then Viki's BakuPod beeped at her. She glanced at it and let out a whoop. "All right! Some kid just lost to someone in a lower rank, and I just went up! I'm now rank 296!"

Julie smiled. "Nice! Looks like you'll be on the same rank number as us in no time!"

Viki glanced again at her BakuPod. "Speaking of numbers, it's already 2:25, and the BakuStore is on the other side of the mall!"

Julie gasped. "O my gosh, you're right!" She sat down and hurriedly yanked at her boots. "You go on over, I'll catch up!"

"Okay, see you see you there!" Viki called as she dashed to an escalator. As she made her way across the store, she made a mental list in her mind of the Bakugan and cards she might want. _I already have the total of Bakugan that I would need. I don't need any more big-G Bakugan, thanks to Fireblick and Dragonis(Hyper Dragonoid). But having Mantis and a Marionette card would be nice. But having a Character Card for my Ravenoid would be nice. But a triple battle card would save me some ability cards too… argh, what to do?! _This debate continued in her head until she reached the BakuStore, only in time to see Jet disappearing into the restroom.

"Come on!" Viki said aloud as she threw her arms into the air.

Fireblick pulled himself out of her pocket, popped open and settled himself on Viki's shoulder. "Well, you almost made it."

"Yeah, and almost doesn't cut it," she muttered as she stalked into the store. As soon as she walked into the store, however, her mood quickly changed. The store was _massive_. The shelves were holding the cards were easily 10 feet long. "Wow… this is _so_ much better than the stores at home!" When Fireblick closed himself in response, she asked "What's wrong?

"I… I've never liked coming to places like these… You may see the Bakugan that have not yet learned of your language as toys, but to me, they are still living, sentient beings trapped on shelves, in boxes, on your belt, and made to battle for sport for life… it sickens my heart."

Viki paused and tried to see the Bakugan as Fireblick saw it. Now she saw Rattleoids, Tuskors, and other Bakugan in their battle modes, living, breathing, crying for help instead of small, plastic balls. "Oh my God, Fireblick, I… I never saw it that way… I'm sorry."

Fireblick's ball shook itself and popped back open again. "It's alright; I will tolerate it as long as necessary. Go ahead and enjoy yourself."

"No problem!" With that Viki began to geek out about the store. There were Bakugan of every species, and every attribute, and just about every G Power. The thing about buying Bakugan, if you wanted one, you would have to beat its G-equivalent at least 6 times in battle to gain sufficient points. So it took at least 2 whole battle sets to purchase one Bakugan. The cards were a different story. Gate cards were relatively cheap, as you used up at least one per battle. For every battle on a gate card you won, you'd win HSP points. The point number itself varied anywhere from 100 to 500, depending on either the gate boost or effect. The HSP value, once earned, could be exchanged for a gate card of equal value.

Ability cards, on the other hand, were actually purchased using the same points as used to purchase Bakugan. For cards like Saurus Glow, those came with the Bakugan. But if you wanted an elemental card, like Water Refrain, or correlation abilities, you had to purchase them with Bakupoints. Depending on the effect, they could be as cheap as half a win against a low-G Bakugan to the equal price of a 400 G Bakugan. Unlike Gate cards, though, they were infinitely reusable.

Viki was debating with herself about buying either a Pyrus Mantis or a Pyrus-Darkus correlation card when a shady figure walked up to the counter with a Darkus Robotallion and a few Gate cards. He wore a cloak similar to Spectra's (except black), and half of his face was covered by a white stage-like mask with red feather-like structures hanging from just above his brow. He was letting his gaze travel across the room while the cashier checked his things out. For a moment Viki ignored him. Until she realized that his gaze had stopped on her.

In a flash Viki had pulled out her Bakupod and had taken a picture. She put it though the scanning app and found a match in the rankings. "Huh," she whispered to Fireblick. "Marduk, rank 37. His most powerful Bakugan is only a 340 G Darkus Griffon." A small warning light flashed in her mind, but she dismissed it. "Think we could take him?"

Fireblick nodded. "Let's do it."

Viki ditched her current items and stopped by the outside of the door. She gripped her field card and waited for Marduk to come out. When he did, she held him back with her arm. "Marduk, I challenge you to a Bakugan Brawl."

Marduk rolled his eyes. "Please, Viki _, I've heard about you, but you're nowhere near my level. If you want your Bakugan to live, then I would seriously recommend backing off."

"Save it, punk, I'm not backing down, let's battle!"

Marduk chuckled. "Alright, you might be worth the rank." He pulled out his field card. "Just saying, I will completely destroy you."

"Cut the trash, just battle!"

Just as the combatants called "Field, Open", Viki saw, behind Marduk, Jet running toward her, screaming for her to stop, reaching for her own field card. _Well, too late to back down now_, Viki thought almost ruefully as Vestroia swirled around them, and the familiar Bakugan battle space settled around them.

They set their Gate cards, and Viki took the liberty of going first. "Let's go, Dragonis! Bakugan Brawl!" She tossed her Bakugan onto Marduk's Gate card. "Hyper Dragonoid, stand!"

The ball was surrounded by fire as a hornless red dragon emerged.

_Pyrus Hyper Dragonoid is stable at 400 Gs. _

Marduk smiled wickedly. "If that's all you've got, then this will be an easy win. Bakugan Brawl!" He threw a dark sphere over to Viki's Dragonis. "Darkus Robotallion, stand!"

A black and purple robot rose out of purple light, and her Bakupod informed Viki that it was only at 270 Gs. "Really? That's your new toy? I think he's about to melt! Dragonis!"

The dragonoid roared and charged the Robotallion. In response, Marduk suddenly grinned wickedly. "Uh oh! It's a trap!" He swung his arm around. "Joker's Wild!"

Alarm flared in Viki. "Dragonis!" She moved forward, but then the Gate card exploded in purple fire, throwing her back. Her Dragonis roared in fury before reverting to his ball form. It fell past her, smoking. Groaning, she picked it up and stood. "Okay, now _that_ is cheap!" she shouted at Marduk.

He shrugged in response. "Hey, it's legal, isn't it?" he answered. "Why not use it?"

Viki growled aloud and grabbed a Gate card. "Fine, you want to play dirty, I'll play dirty! Gate card, set!" She threw down a gate card, grabbed her Hynoid and tossed it over to her card. It opened and a red wolf emerged howling.

_Pyrus Hynoid stands at 330 Gs._

Marduk shrugged and threw down his Robotallion again. "The result will be the same."

"You wish! Gate card open, Triple Battle!"

The Gate card flared, and a rainbow-colored wall came up in between the two Bakugan.

Marduk chuckled and grabbed two ability cards. "You actually think that will work? Dimension Four and Correlation of Darkus and Pyrus!"

The wall between the two Bakugan shattered, and the Robotallion glowed purple.

_Gate card nullified. Robotallion power level at 370 Gs_.

"Oh no you don't!" Viki yelled defiantly. "Ability activate, Fire Tornado!"

She threw the card toward her Hynoid. It burst into flames mid-flight, and circled around the wolf-like creature until a full tornado surrounded it.

_Power exchange complete. Robotallion stands at 270 Gs. Hynoid stands at 430 Gs._

The Hynoid leaped into the air and dived toward the robot-Bakugan. It raised its arm to defend itself, but it did nothing. The flames wrapped themselves around the Bakugan, and a purple light flared from inside the tornado. A glowing sphere fell out of the tornado to Marduk's side.

The Darkus brawler actually looked slightly surprised. "Huh, you actually are pretty good."

Viki smiled and held out her hand. "None better. Fireblick?"

Her guardian Bakugan nodded and dropped into Viki's palm. "Let's show them!"

"Bakugan, Brawl! Rise, Pyrus Fireblick!"

Her Bakugan stood from a circle of fire and roared in delight. "Ah, it is _good_ to be back!"

Marduk looked Fireblick up and down. "Really, another Dragonoid? Fine, take the Griffon." He carelessly dropped his Bakugan on the card. The winged lion simply lowered himself to the ground.

_Darkus Griffon at 340 Gs. Pyrus Fireblick at 350 Gs_.

Fireblick glanced back at Viki. "It almost makes you feel sorry for the poor guy, doesn't it?"

Viki grinned. "Almost. Let him have it!"

"Gladly!" Fireblick flew up to the lion and let out a massive upper cut that sent the Griffon 150 feet over Marduk's head. It hit the ground with a deafening thud, reverting to its ball form on impact.

Marduk now looked angry as he grabbed for a gate card. "You do realize you just signed your own death warrant."

"Hey, when you're good, you're good," Viki shot back as she picked up her own card.

"Gate card, set!" the two yelled in unison as they set down their Gate cards.

"You have no Bakugan above my Hynoid's power level, and only one ability card left! I've gonna level up big time today! Bakugan brawl! Stand, Hynoid!"

As her Hynoid emerged on Marduk's Gate card, Marduk began a long, malicious laugh. "What's so funny?" she asked, furious at him for ruining her moment of feeling victorious.

"You _actually_ think that I was fighting at full power? _Really?!_ You are so gonna become food for my Bakugan!" He threw a Bakugan that was surrounded in purple mist with all his might. "RISE, Battle Ax Vladitor!"

His words hit Viki like a hammer, with so much force she stumbled. "Battle Ax… no… NO! NOT POSSIBLE!" she cried, slamming her fists in to the ground.

The sphere opened, and an explosion of dark energy filled the battle space as a dark, caped figure with an enormous ax rose from a pit of darkness. He gave a villenous chuckle. "Nothing's impossible, human fool." The Gate card flared purple, and shadowy mist surrounded them. "Normally I don't even gain power from them, the weaklings. But you actually are powerful enough for me to harvest energy from! You were a fool to challenge me, and here's your reward!" He swung his ax in a full circle before letting it slam into the Hynoid. It howled in pain, and made brief eye contact before it shattered into a million glowing fragments.

"NO!"Viki slammed her fist into the ground, tears clouding her vision. _"MONSTER!"_

Marduk chuckled as his Vladitor returned to him. "_Now_ the battle is over."

Viki fell to her knees and put her hands to her face. Fireblick rested on her shoulder. "What am I supposed to?" she whispered, barely holding back a sob. "He's just too powerful. And he'll destroy you too…"

Fireblick lowered his head. "I don't know. I've never been faced with a situation like this before. But what I do know is that you must always try. That's what Jet does, what Spectra does, and what anyone would do in a battle with no backing down. Give it your best shot!" He closed himself and waited for Viki to pick him up.

Viki gave a near intelligible nod as Fireblick fueled the final ember of hope left in her. "Okay," she whispered. Then her voice regained its strength, and she called "All right!" She grabbed Fireblick and gripped him tightly. "Well, what are you waiting for, Marduk, an invitation?"

The Darkus brawler grinned wickedly. "I was hoping you'd say that." He raised his hand.

In unison, both yelled "Bakugan, BRAWL!" and released their Bakugan. They collided mid-flight, causing red flames and purple mists to mix as the beasts emerged to battle.

_Pyrus Fireblick stands at 350 Gs. Darkus Battle Ax Vladitor stands at 750 Gs_.

At that Marduk began to laugh in malevont glee. "Do you seriously expect to win? Vladitor has you beat by a factor of 2!"

"Yeah, but what doubles my power level?" Viki challenged.

Marduk stopped laughing, and his face fell. "Oh…"

Viki swung her arm around. "Character card, activate!" The gate card flared, and Fireblick began to glow.

_Fireblick power surge, 700 Gs_.

Fireblick paused. "Uh, Viki, it's not enough!"

"You think I didn't know that? Ability card activate, Blazing Dragon!"

Fireblick roared as flames built up in his mouth. "Today you messed with the wrong Dragonoid, Vladitor!"

_Fireblick power level increase to 800 Gs_.

"You think that will work?" Marduk hollered as he threw up an ability card. "It's nowhere _near_ enough. Centurion Slash!"

Vladitor's eyes flashed, and purple mist began to flow around his ax. "You put up a good fight, but it is over now!" He raised his ax and began to twirl around.

_Power exchange complete, Fireblick stands at 700 Gs. Vladitor stands at 850 Gs_.

Viki's eyes widened as she looked up from her BakuPod. "Aw ! #$%^&*…"

"Now it is your time to die!" the dark lord yelled as he swung his ax at Fireblick.

"Not happening, pal!" the Dragonoid declared. Without Viki's intervention, the Fire Tornado card flew out of her pocket and surrounded Fireblick, deflecting the ax.

"What?!" Vladitor yelled in shock.

_Fireblick stands at 900 Gs. Battle Ax Vladitor stands at 750 Gs_.

"You want a piece of me?" Fireblick roared, _"So come and get it!" _He shot his fireball at Vladitor, and the fire tornado wrapped itself around it, creating a devastating attack.

Vladitor brought up his ax in a defensive position. "This is going to _huuurrrt!"_

_"Never!"_ Marduk pulled out a new card and threw it to Vladitor's ax. "Fusion Ability, Millennium Destructor!"

Again Vladitor's eyes flashed, and his ax suddenly grew twice the size of its wielder. "I don't want _a_ piece, I want two!" He threw away the fireball effortlessly, and brought down his ax onto the gate card, shattering it.

"What?!" Fireblick shrieked in surprise as he stopped glowing.

_Gate card nullified. Battle Ax Vladitor stands at 950 Gs. Fireblick stands at 450 Gs_.

Viki slowly backed away. "No…" she whispered. "Please, no…"

"It's been real, Fireblick,"Vladitor declared, "but your time has come!" With that he leaped into the air, flipped, and brought down his ax onto Fireblick. The dragonoid screamed in agony as the explosion from the ax tore him apart. The blast threw Viki back as they rejoined normal time. She barely saw Jet's terrified face before she slammed into a wall and was knocked unconscious.

Oo0oO

"Viki!" Jet dashed past Marduk to her friend. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Fireblick's ball, filled with glowing cracks that were slowly dissipating. "No, no no no, please don't be dead." She rolled Viki over and thrust her fingers to her neck. Thankfully, it still fluttered alive with a pulse. "Oh, thank God…"

Marduk scoffed. "She actually put up a good fight. I'm actually tempted to think she actually earned her rank."

_"Don't you dare dis my friend, Marduk!" _she screeched, causing the whole quarter of the mall to fall silent. She then whispered "Vladitor, get out here."

A soft click echoed through the now-silent mall. "Her Bakugan actually survived my fusion ability… I'm surprised."

A sense of dread filled Jet. "What do you mean, survived? Did others…" She couldn't get the words out.

Vladitor laughed vilely. "Yes, they perished, and they gave me strength. It's either that or the Doom Dimension so that I could gain power, so I'm actually giving them a kindness."

A sense of righteous rage filled Jet. "So you kill innocent Bakugan, kind Bakugan, you own _people_, just so that you can increase your own power? Is that it?" She picked up Fireblick and stood, glaring at Vladitor. "And here I thought you still had a sense of _honor_." She spat out the last word, like a curse.

Vladitor moved back an inch and began to shake. "How… how dare you insult me?! I will not tolerate this!"

"And yet," Jet gloated, "you can't do anything unless we are on the battlefield. So I control when and where you tolerate this."

Vladitor could merely growl in response.

"I will, however, accept a battle with you in the local stadium in two hours. AND only if I'm allowed to bring someone else to battle with me. Take it or leave it." She grinned wickedly. "Or I will _personally _hunt you down with Exceedra by my side and ensure that you _will _stay locked in the Doom Dimension for all eternity."

Marduk frowned. "It's not worth the time. Let's go Vladitor." He turned to leave.

"NO!" Vladitor roared in defiance. "I_ will_ crush you and your Bakugan! I will not settle for less!"

Jet nodded. "Then you better be prepared." She turned her back on a fuming Vladitor and flipped open her BakuPod, and whispered "Get me John Smith."

0oOo0

"So." John took a sip of his coffee. "That's what's up."

Jet nodded. "You and I both know that Vladitor is too powerful for me to take alone. I need help."

"Yes, and I can't stand the thought of Fireblick being almost being killed by that punk!" a ticked-off Skylord yelled. "I want payback!"

"Hold on now," Leonidas interjected. "If there's anything I've learned from John, it's that revenge isn't everything." He lowered his head. "I did think, however, that when I had saved Vladitor, he had changed…"

Jet nodded. "So did I…" she whispered, quietly enough that the others didn't hear her.

"So what do you want us to do?" John Smith asked.

Jet put down her coffee and leaned toward John. "Vladitor wants to crush me because I took the liberty of insulting him, but because I can control when we battle, I forced him to let me bring someone else to that battle. You were the only person who ever defeated Vladitor, let alone three times. So I'm asking you if you would join me."

John shook his head. "No." He stood. "This is not my battle, it is yours. But Leonidas feels differently." With that final word, he walked away.

For a moment Jet just sat there, confused. Then Skylord asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"

Leonidas moved to the center of the table. "John is not willing to fight this battle. But he knows me so well, and I him, that he knows that I am. So he will be watching us, but not with us."

Jet nodded. "That will do." She held up Fireblick, still warm, three cracks still fading. "I will stop him from destroying any more Bakugan ever again."

Oo0o0

Jet was shocked when she walked into the field of the stadium. The stands were filled with hundreds of kids, and when she walked into the open, a few minutes early, the crowd erupted in cheers.

"What in the name of Exceedra…" Skylord whispered.

"Word must've spread," Leonidas guessed.

"What do you mean?" Jet asked. "There couldn't have been more than five kids in that store."

"You forget," Leonidas said, "that you caught the attention of half the mall when you screamed at Marduk. A showdown of this magnitude would easily attract hundreds. I wouldn't be surprised if over a thousand others were watching us right now on the internet."

"Yeah, right…" Jet raised her hand, mildly embarrassed by the attention of the crowd. Out of nowhere, an amateur cameraman walked up with a twenty year old carrying a microphone. He was commenting to the cameraman before getting to Jet. "Excuse me, Jet Raynet. I'm sure that your new fans would like a quick word."

Jet laughed. "No, I'm no one special. I'm just a teen who's willing to fight for her friends." With a flick of the wrist she dismissed them, and walked to the center of the field.

When she reached the line on a circle in center field, a glowing purple sphere flew out from above the stadium. When it reached the line opposite of Jet, the sphere widened, then shattered, revealing Marduk. "Right on time," Jet shouted over the deafening boo of the crowd.

"Yes, I like to be punctual," he yelled back. "Where's your friend?"

"Right here."

Jet spun around in shock to see Masquerade walk out of a dimension gate. The crowd gasped in surprise. "Wait, what?"

Marduk groaned. Vladitor scoffed "Masquerade, I should have known."

"But I… I didn't call him," Jet stammered.

"No, you didn't," Masquerade said plainly. "But Naga sent me to punish Vladitor for breaking our deal. Don't think this is an act of friendship, my dear Jet." He pulled out his Doom Card with a flick of the wrist. "It is the will of Naga, and it will be done!"

"Ha! Looks like I will have quite the feast," Vladitor laughed.

"You wish, punk!" Jet yelled as she pulled out her field card. "You use that card on me, you're toast," she hissed to Masquerade.

A loud sound like folding cards echoed though the stadium as everyone pulled out their field cards. All at once everyone shouted "Field, Open!" A rainbow of lights filled the stadium as it morphed to stone right in front of them. The crowd roared in anticipation of the battle.

"Gate card, set!" the three Darkus brawlers yelled as they threw down their Gate cards. The stadium glowed purple for a split second, and in that brief, shining moment, Jet realized exactly what she was doing. _So I'm in the same stadium that Dan beat Masquerade in, with Omega Leonidas in my pocket, with Masquerade himself by my side, about to defeat one of the most powerful Bakugan of his time… Talk about awesomeness!_

"I don't want to waste time with your weaklings!" Marduk yelled. "Let's do this here and now! Brawl, Battle Ax Vladitor!"

Marduk threw the glowing sphere to Masquerade's Gate card, and the Darkus warrior rose out of the card. "Who wants to go first?!" he hollered.

"I will! Bakugan Brawl!" Masquerade shot back as he launched his glowing Guardian Bakugan. "Rise, Darkus Dual Hydranoid!"

The sphere flashed, and the two headed beast rose in purple light. "I will!" "Make you!" "Suffer!" "So much!" the two heads yelled alternatively.

_Battle commences. Darkus Battle Ax Vladitor stands at 750 Gs. Darkus Dual Hydranoid stands at 480 Gs. _

"Ha ha!" Vladitor sneered. "Do you actually think you stand a chance?!"

"Not alone, I don't!" Masquerade countered. He flicked his wrist up. "Final Judgment!"

The Gate card flashed, and three walls came up, one section of the Gate card empty for Jet's Bakugan. "Oh, but that makes it easier!" Vladitor laughed. "Now I can have you both at once!"

Jet rolled her eyes, and the crowd's noise was lost in the mental heat of battle. "Whatever, you're still going down!" She tossed up Skylord. "Bakugan Brawl! Skylord stand!"

"Oh hello, Vladitor!" she roared as she rose from purple mist. "I believe some payback is in order!"

_Darkus Skylord enters battle at 460 Gs._

Marduk grabbed two ability cards. "I'll make this quick. Centurion Slash and Night Explorer!"

_Battle Ax Vladitor power surge to 850 Gs. Skylord power drop to 310 Gs. Dual Hydranoid power drop to 330 Gs._

"Fool! Double Dimension and Darkus Gazer Dual!" Masquerade threw not one, but two dimension cards at Vladitor and threw Hydranoid's ability card to him. The dual headed monster let out a screech as two purple balls of lightning formed in its mouth.

_Ability cards nullified. Hydranoid power surge to 530 Gs._

When Skylord began to jump in anticipation of battle, Jet called "Hold on, Skylord. You're only there to watch."

"What do you mean?" the dragon asked. I can beat…"

Before she could finish her sentence, a ball of lightning from Dual Hydranoid blasted into her, and she screeched, reverting to her ball form. Masquerade called on his fusion ability, Destruction Impact, and the Dual Hydranoid released its other ball of supercharged lightning at Vladitor, and an even bigger explosion shook the stadium.

_Dual Hydranoid power surge to 630 Gs. _

Masquerade laughed maliciously. "And so ends the reign of the mighty Vladitor!"

But then the smoke cleared, revealing Vladitor, holding an ax with scorch marks on it. "What?!" "Impossible!" the heads of Hydranoid gasped in shock.

Vladitor chuckled. "If you think that cheap tricks like those would work, then you still have a lot to learn!" He swung his ax at the two-headed Hydranoid. An explosion ripped through the air, and a smoking Dual Hydranoid clinked against the ground.

Masquerade fell to his knees, stunned, as Marduk caught Vladitor. The crowd noises filled Jet's ears once again as they booed for a full thirty seconds. It was so loud that Marduk had to wait for them to quiet down to speak. "Why are we still here?" he asked, gesturing to the battle space surrounding them.

"Oh, that?" Jet giggled uncharacteristically. She pulled Leonidas out of her pocket. "I still have one ace left up my sleeve. I was just waiting for you to waste some ability cards."

Marduk groaned. "Oh, whatever. Crush her Vladitor." He dropped his Bakugan onto Jet's Gate card.

The Darkus lord rose out of the card. "I will feed on all of your Bakugan tonight!"

"You wish." Jet held Leonidas close. "You can do this, right?"

The Bakugan chuckled. "What makes you think I can't? Let's do this."

"Okay." Jet threw up Leonidas in a manner similar to Spectra's form. "Time to end this, Vladitor! Bakugan, BRAWL!" She hurled the Bakugan across the field. "_Rise_, Pyrus Omega Leonidas!"

Marduk and Vladitor froze as the red and yellow dragon rose from flames. The Gate card flashed, and more flames circled the stadium. "You know, Vladitor," the legendary dragon said, "when I freed you from the Doom Dimension, I thought you had changed. I guess I was _wrong!_" He emphasized his words by throwing out his wings, forming a shock wave that threw flames even farther.

_Darkus Battle Ax Vladitor stands at 750 Gs. Pyrus Omega Leonidas power increase to 550 Gs. _

That broke Marduk out of his trance. "Why only a 50 G boost?" he asked. "You could've had way more than that!"

"Do you think I'm stupid?" Jet shot back. "I'm not wasting HSP on a card that will get nullified anyway by your fusion ability."

At that Vladitor shook his head. He put his ax between his shoulders and began to clap, a thunderous sound that echoed though the arena. "Nicely done, human. You are better than most. And as for you, Leonidas…" He pulled his ax out in an elegant display. "You may have defeated me before, but not today!"

"Got that right!" Marduk yelled, pulling out an ultimate ability card. "Centurion Slash!"

Purple mist flowed around Vladitor's ax, and he swung it around.

_Battle Ax Vladitor power surge to 850 Gs. Omega Leonidas power decrease to 500 Gs. _

"Like that's gonna work!" Jet shouted. "Delta Blaze and Fire Tornado!"

"I'm gonna give you one last warning, Vladitor," Leonidas hissed as flames built up around his mouth. "Desist now, or feel my wrath!"

_Omega Leonidas power surge to 750 Gs. Battle Ax Vladitor power drop to 700 Gs._

"It is _MY_ wrath you should fear, Leonidas!" Vladitor countered. "Marduk!"

"Yes! Fusion Ability! Millennium Destructor!"

Vladitor's eyes flashed, and a burst of dark energy blasted though the stadium, shattering the Gate card. His ax grew to tremendous size. "Now is the time of your defeat!"

_Gate card nullified. Battle Ax Vladitor power surge to 900 Gs. Omega Leonidas power drop to 700 Gs._

"Never!" Leonidas roared. "Jet Raynet!"

"Got it! Fusion ability card, activate!" She threw the card high in the air, and Leonidas flew to it. "Omega Eraser!"

Leonidas' eyes flashed, and he drew every flame from the fire tornado to his now-lightning filled jaws. "I gave you a fair warning, my friend. Now pay the price for betraying me!" He dropped to the ground and dug his claws in.

"Now for the finisher!" Jet yelled. She threw one last card to Leonidas. "Aftershock!"

The card landed in his mouth, and for a split second, the lightning shrank to a tiny ball. Then it was burst forth in a terrifying display of tremendous power. A cylinder shaped shock wave assaulted the ears of everyone in the stadium.

_Leonidas power surge to 1300 Gs. Battle Ax Vladitor power drop to 500 Gs. _

Vladitor tried to use his tremendous ax to deflect the blast, but the super-charged lighting threw the ax over Vladitor's head and slammed into the Bakugan's chest globe. He roared in pain and defiance as an explosion ripped through the air.

"Vladitor! Argh!" Markuk grunted as he was thrown from his feet as the explosion tossed him like a ragdoll. Reality rushed back as he landed on the soft turf, rubber flying up like dust.

Jet regained her sense of the crowd as they roared so loudly that nothing else was audible. She found Leonidas over her shoulder, and a Vladitor so badly damaged that his cracks were a micrometer from coming together and destroying the Bakugan. Masquerade quickly left using his dimensional transport card. The Darkus brawler picked up Vladitor and walked to Marduk. "Hey," she said aloud to the mysterious kid. "You know that you already used up your second chance. But I'm willing to give you a third."

"So am I," John Smith said as he jumped over the barrier separating the crowd from the field. "I know that you come from a completely screwed up place. It's not an excuse, but that's life." He laid his hand on a sobbing Marduk's shoulder. "Get up, and we'll give you another chance."

The sobbing stopped. "Re… really?"

"Yeah." Jet smiled broadly. "You of all people need to learn. You need chances to do that." She placed Vladitor in Marduk's open hand on closed it. Go on."

Marduk nodded. "Okay."

"You know he'll come back for you," John whispered to Jet. "He'll want payback."

Jet nodded. "Don't worry. I'm counting on it."


End file.
